Children Of Strict Religious Parents Explain Which Things Were Banned In Their Household

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With so many people in our generations growing up on Harry Potter, it can seem kind of nuts that magic-related things would be restricted to us when we were kids. But plenty of children grew up with restrictions to what they could watch or otherwise consume- typically the children of very religious parents. Here are their stories.
u/monsteraadansonii asked: Redditors with religious parents, what nonsensical rules did you have about what video games/books/movies/etc. were okay while growing up?
Santa = Satan?
No Power Rangers (obtaining powers from crystals was witchcraft).
No Santa Clause (Santa was Satan apparently, we were too afraid to question that one).
No Pokemon (psychic powers came from the devil).
XxVerdantFlamesxXReally big butterflies.
Pokémon promoted evolution, and therefore was a corruption menace, leading to my secret cards being discovered and shiny Lapras being put through the washing machine :(
What's funny is that they didn't even start promoting evolution until regional forms came out. Before then, their "evolution" was really more like metamorphosis.
"No, mom, this isn't Darwinian. Just think of these things as really big butterflies instead."
Sorcery!
My wife is a librarian. She says a lot of parents restrict Harry Potter because it imperils their children's soul with tales of sorcery.
My dad is a very religious man. I mean to the point of reading the New Testament in Greek religious.
He read Harry Potter back when the whole 'ohmyGOD burn the heathen book' mess just started.
His response was 'do these people know the meaning of the word allegory?!' He thought the book was great and told quite a few nuts they were, well, nuts.
Those evil bicycle cards.
Almost anything could be construed as evil. We were playing with bicycle cards once and she looked at the king with the sword in his head and freaked out, threw away all the cards.
I was also told even thinking the word damn would get you sent to hell so I was always nervous when I thought about that. Basically just thinking "don't think damn, do not think damn".
Sports were pretty much the only thing I could watch besides Christian programming. I liked cartoons obviously but the only acceptable ones were these tapes we had that told bible stories.
Not the drums!
My partner comes from a very religious household, and he was forbidden to listen to any music with drums in it because drums were the "devil's music".
Edit: just to answer some questions, his parents are really f*cking weird and seem to have their own version of Christianity. He and the rest of his siblings were homeschooled, and most of the time they do their own little church service from home. As far as I know they don't listen to any music at home still!
Jeez!
I wasn't allowed say "jeez" because it's "short for Jesus." That's the most annoying thing I can think of.
I almost got kicked out of a religious friend's house mid-slumber party for this. We were playing monopoly, I said "Jeez!" at some point, and her mom got up and left the room. I heard later from my friend that her mom was seriously considering calling my parents to come pick me up
That's kinda cute.
So this reminds me of a fantastic story. I went to Catholic high school so unsurprisingly a decent number of the teachers had fairly strong religious beliefs (all were super accepting and supportive of the students' beliefs and interests). My history teacher for 9th and 11th grade was one such teacher. His replacement for when he was irritated or in shock, etc. was "cheese and crackers!"
That just sounds racist to me, dog.
Action and violence? No problem. Serial killer documentaries? No issue whatsoever. But anime was heresy and trading card games were the devil because "these things come from a different culture".
Tbh it wasn't as much of a problem that they were religious as it was that they were racist about anything non-western.
That's a little extra.
No Disney movies because they were full of magic. Harry Potter was of course pure evil.
Mother blew a fuse when she find my father had a Styx tape because that's the river in Hell.
I borrowed the Escaflowne anime box set from a friend in high school. My mother saw approximately 0.5 seconds of it and declared it evil. Her snide remarks next time said friend came around were enough to guilt her into selling it for a fraction of what it was worth.
No computer or video games on Sundays.
Parents wrote nasty letters to the local TV news because of their use of the phrase "blow job" during the Clinton impeachment.
The worst part is how long that sh*t sticks with you even after you finally escape it.
Edit: how could I forget the most ridiculous one — Halloween is devil worship, so when my elementary school classmates were colouring jack-o'-lanterns, I was sitting out in the hall with the Jehovah's Witness kid.
Nah, it's just vegetables.
I couldn't watch Dragon Ball Z because my mom heard on the radio that all their names had satanic meaning in Japanese. I told her "But I don't know Japanese! It means nothing to me." But she said the message could get buried in my brain and affect me subconsciously.
Turns out the names did have meaning, they're pretty much all types of food or food-related. Kakarot = Carrot, Vegeta = Vegetable, Raditz = Radish, Broly = Broccoli, Paragus = Asparagus, the list goes on.
If anything, DBZ would have subconsciously encouraged you to eat healthily.
Not The Simpsons!!!!
For a short while I lived with my dad and his parents and the only thing they banned was the Simpsons. My dad and I still watched it when they weren't home though.
Good response.
My mother is a Cuban emigrant. She and my father were missionaries before I was even born. I wasn't allowed to watch/read/learn anything that wasn't directly related to the church. I "learned everything I need to know from the Bible." Instead of listing everything I wasn't allowed, I will just list the things that were confiscated by my mother for being non-religious.
- Garbage Pail Kids cards. Especially devastating because EVERYONE at my school had them, and I had traded a lot of stuff to get them. Also in this category, Baseball cards, and playing cards were not allowed, because the act of,"trading cards" is a form of gambling, somehow.
- Walkman, my parents didn't allow the private listening or viewing of anything. They said that they didn't allow it, because a) I could be listening to music, b) listening to Christian radio stations with headphones on was wrong, because it showed that I was embarrassed to listen to my Christian music in public, another sin.
- Books. Including text books. My parents believed that I was "called" to be a missionary, and therefore only needed to learn Christian material. I had a HUGE collection of used text books that I kept under my bed. When my parents went to work I learned everything I could, except Math. I hated Math, and had a hard time learning it on my own.
- I wasn't allowed to have friends, even Christian friends, because anyone can be tempted into being a bad influence.
------------------------------------------
I haven't been in contact with my family since my father died. He was the last sane person in our family, and used to sneak me off to McDonald's for secret dinners. (Soda wasn't allowed at home.) He knew my life was hell, but he was a weak person. My mother sent me a long letter on my birthday that year, saying I was a hellbound sinner. So on her birthday, I sent her a photo of me in drag for Halloween, telling her that I just got a sex change. (I did not)
Cards for sorrow, cards for pain.
I lost several MTG decks to my religious grandmother. She would raise a huge stink about them being constructs of evil then burn them outside while praying.
Loved that woman but gawd she pissed me off sometimes.
Makes sense, I guess?
I wasn't allowed to watch the Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy. I think my mom screamed at me once for that when I was nine, and I stopped watching that. To be fair, it is entirely about the grim reaper...
Have you ever been caught in a conversation you didn't want to be in? Or start talking to someone only to realize you want to stop? Perhaps you were talking to a friend when the conversation took a turn for the uncomfortable.
Whatever the case, we've all been in those situations where we want the conversation to stop, but don't want to be rude.
When I was in third grade, I asked if I voted on American Idol that week. I said yes, since everyone seemed to, but of course I didn't know what American Idol was. Being pop culture challenged, I thought it was a ship. Needless to say everyone was confused when I was asked who I voted for and I replied, "What do you mean? I voted for American Idol!"
It didn't take me long to realize something was amiss, and I probably would've very rudely excused myself from the conversation (fueled by my embarrassment) if my teacher hadn't called us to attention at that very moment.
Luckily, the people of Reddit were willing to share their methods to politely end a conversation when Redditor Spritti33asked:
"How does someone politely end a conversation with a person who won't stop talking?"
Extricate Yourself Immediately
"When they draw a breath, politely say:"
""On that note, I must be on my way.""
Then, simply leave."
– Back2Bach
Couldn't Get Him To Shut Up
"Yea I worked with a dude who needed to talk. I just talked to him to be polite and not awkward. And I remember him saying "at least you're not one of those people who are silent all day". In my head I'm like, "FUCK, I wish I could be silent all day but now that you said that it would be even more awkward."
"At some point, I just mentally said f**k it and started giving him one-word replies. I think he got the hint because he started talking to me less. Eventually, he quit after a couple of months so it's all good!"
"But some people just need to talk for whatever reason. I need my freaking silence."
– BlackSecurity
Put It In Writing
"I once worked with a man that managed to say nothing, despite talking nonstop. He would explain an issue to me over the span of 5 min. I would say "OK, so the issue you're having is x?" and he would say "No" then launch into a 5 min monologue about something completely different. One time, after half an hour talking with him I still had no idea what the problem was, so I said "put all the issues in an email so I can put it in the queue" and just left. Never got a coherent email either but at least a rambling incoherent email is easier to walk away from and less time-consuming."
– TechnologyFetish
Put Them (Back) To Work
"If you're in an office building with someone (or any location the person you're talking to has a desk), one trick you can try is walking them back to their desk, say something like "well, I'll let you get back to it!", then turn around and leave."
– RegulusMagnus
Taking Care Of Each Other
"My workplace has someone like this and it’s pretty much become a part of our culture to monitor who is trapped talking to her, for how long they’ve been stuck, and to rescue them after an appropriate amount of time has passed. She doesn’t get it, and probably never will."
– Lady_DreadStar
Talk To The Door
"My husband worked with a woman who would not stop talking. Just wouldn't. So you'd gather your stuff, while she monologued. You'd say goodbye to everyone else, while she monologued. You'd walk to the door as she followed you and shut the door in her face while she monologued. You could hear her still talking to you behind the closed door while you walked away."
– BoozeIsTherapyRight
Take Your Turn
"I learned a trick. Most excessive talkers hate listening. So I simply participate and tell my own stories. After one or two stories they are usually ready to leave themselves to seek their next victim."
– RireBaton
Create A Deadline
"My entire dad's side of the family are the type that never stop talking."
"The key to getting a word in is to just respond to whatever you wanted to add to even if they are still talking. It might feel rude but most people who are like that were raised in environments where that's the norm or in the case of people with disorders like ADHD and Autism, they most likely know they have the tendency and will roll with it."
"Best way I've found to get end a conversation with ramblers is to set a deadline as early as possible in the conversation (ex: I have to leave at 6pm to get to ______ on time). If you do this you can do the "I'm sorry I really have to go" and immediately leave without offending them because you've already set the expectation that you would be leaving at a certain time."
– aflyingcowpie
Music
"This is why I hate taking Lyft/Uber alone, I seem to always get the folks who just want to talk the entire time. My boyfriend tells me to just not engage but when you’re in a car with someone it’s kinda hard not to. The ONE time I just wore headphones the whole time, the driver at the end said “maybe you’ll actually talk next time”"
– sm0gs
"Headphones..."
– bob_marley98
No Need To Feel Bad
"People who are like this expect folks to just walk away from them while they are talking because that’s the only way the conversation ends. It’s not rude to them, it’s normal. So, it’s entirely okay to say, “all right this has been great, see you later,” and then just walk away smiling."
– paulpowell9
Sometimes it's hard to get out of a conversation you never wanted to be in, and sometimes it's equally as hard to keep your temper in check.
However, if you remember some of these tips and tricks, you may be able to successfully get yourself out of an unpleasant or unceremoniously long conversation in the future!
Death is a certainty in life, but what happens after death may be one of those mysteries we never solve. I've always believed that when we're dead, we're dead. However, there are plenty of other theories.
Is there an afterlife? Do we face a supernatural judge who decides whether we go to heaven or hell? Do we get reincarnated as soon as we die? Or is death truly final?
These questions prompted Redditor Maleficent_Team430 to ask:
"What do you think happens to you after you die?"
Like Surgery
"I imagine its like when you fall asleep unexpectedly or go under for a surgery and you wake up out of a haze, minus the waking up part."
– Snoo-43285
"I had surgery last year and, before I went under, the anaesthetist said "Enjoy the nothingness". And that was it. No light, no colours, no sound, just complete darkness until I woke up with a breathing tube getting pulled out my throat. I imagine that's what death will be like. And I'm OK with that."
– Amity75
Time To Sell
"My family sells all my stuff way under value."
– knockfart
"I f*cking hope that if i die my wife doesnt sell my Legos at the price i told her i bought them"
– Fairbyyy
"My wife sells my record collection for way less then what it’s worth"
– Chips_Gravy29
The World Keeps Turning
"I am no different than people who die today, the sun shall rise again and word will keep on rolling tomorrow just fine without me."
– GaunterPatrick
"Well in a few billions years the sun shall not rise again. But we will be pretty much dead by then — I hope so."
– flucxapacitor
Eden...Sort Of
"It was always that everything goes black and you just don't exist anymore. My SO believes that you die and you get to live in your own little paradise and I've always loved the idea of that. I just wish I could believe it. It's also been super sweet to hear from him that I'm gonna be in his little paradise."
– Asmo_fu2
"I've posted this before but the idea of my own little paradise disturbs and terrifies me. Because my little paradise wouldn't be the same as other people's. If I say desire to meet my parents again after I die, the age I'd want them to be is likely different to the age they'd want to be in their paradise. Which means none of our paradises can overlap, and the idea of heaven is really just a simulation in which you are horribly alone."
– trthaw2
The Next Universe
"You just transfer to the next universe where you didn't die."
– murphycharlie
"This is what I think about all the time. I always wonder if I have died in a previous universe and just transferred over to the one in which I am still living, but all my family in the previous one think I’m dead."
– Deadlift420
"I like this theory"
– QuickAdministration0
Nothingness
"You return to that state of non-existence before you were conceived."
– Back2Bach
"It's like falling asleep and not waking up. I find that comforting. The final I don't give a f*ck."
– nawmynameisclarence
"Probably nothing, I think it’s probably like when we’re asleep and not dreaming. I was fine before I was born, I’ll be fine again"
– nicosmom25
We Will Live Again
"I hope something like reincarnation but it’s probably just nothing. Like we just end and we’re not aware that it’s nothing but it is."
– les_bean_13
"Careful what you wish for. Everyone thinks they'll end up as something cool like a lion but nobody thinks about how insects and bacteria make up some of the largest populations of life on earth. Maybe you'll be gut bacteria for some rat. Or a slug that a kid wants to pour salt on."
– TheyreEatingHer
Whatever You Believe In
"I wish people would go to wherever they wanted to, like - whatever their religion teaches, they’ll go there. And if their non-religious, then they can choose whatever they want to a believe in. I don’t know what’ll happen to me but I hope to see my friends again"
– TVFREngine64_2020
"I think the same personally. I hope to to still be with my wife either way."
– TheMetalMisfit
"Honestly this being the case would make up for all the unfairness in life."
– Chromattix
"This is my dream as well. I hope so. I want longer with my friends than I’ll get."
– Ginngerly
I Know What Happens
"19 years in the business tells me you either go in the ground, in a crematory, a mausoleum, or you’re never found again."
– andS0NS
"Have you considered trying a different business model?"
– MrWeirdoFace
We'll Know Eventually
"What’s the rush? We’ll find out soon enough"
– LSD_for_Everyone
We may never truly know what happens to us when we die, but maybe it's better that way! I'd rather not think about it, especially if I'm right!
When people who made positive impressions and inspired others to do better in their long and well-lived lives pass away, the loss can be profound.
But a person who was taken from us at an early age can be even more devastating.
What other things would they have accomplished? What additional contributions could they have made to improve society?
These are the questions one may have following the death of someone they admired and necessarily didn't know personally.
People shared examples when Redditor therealCapCon asked:
"What famous person died too soon?"
These ingenious minds contributed so much to society. What else could they have given us? We'll never know.
He Gave Us The Muppets
"Jim Henson. Man had such a good spirit - he was creative and optimistic and humorous. I'm so sad we lost him so early."
– GawkieBird
He Gave Us Satire
"Douglas Adams. Died at only 48. Must have been only 10 or 15 years away from stopping procrastinating and finishing another book."
– mikedufty
He Fathered Theoretical Computer Science
"Alan Turing."
– BoiledFroglet
"A truly just good human. And what the British government did to him is disgusting and inhumane."
– I_Do_Cannabis_Stuff
He Gave Us Robotics
"Grant Imahara."
– loudwisdom
"I also Cried. And then again when Adam Savage took a tour of Grants workshop that has been kept in stasis since his death."
– jiamby
"Mythbusters is the reason why I'm studying engineering in college. Rip Grant 😞"
– alexx_sandraa
These young comedians left quite a legacy in their age.
We will continue to remember them for lifting us up whenever we were down.
He Cracked Us Up
"John Candy."
– Realitycheck-4u
"This was my answer too. Two of his films were always favorites at my house and I wonder how many we missed out on."
– FDRip
He Left Us In Stitches
"Phil Hartman."
– Volkditty
"I loved him as Troy McClure on the Simpson’s 'I’m Troy McClure and I’ll leave you here for what we all waited to see HARDCORE NUDITY.'”
– Limited_U
He Gave Genius Sketch Comedy
"Trevor Moore, comic genius dead at 41 from a random freak accident, def way too soon and would have kept having great material as society really spiralled out of control."
– yes420
He Gave Us Joy
"John Ritter. Unexpectedly died in his early 50s."
– SquigwardTennisballs
These gifted actors are greatly missed for their inspiring and brilliant work on film.
He Gave Us Drama
"Alan Rickman."
– Introvertedandproud
"Hans Gruber is and will be my favorite ever movie villain, and snape is and will be my second favorite, Rickman was just on another level."
– chartman21
He Was Just Getting Started
"Anton Yelchin"
– kingspooky93
"He was my age and was one of my favorite actors since I saw him in Charlie Bartlett. One of the saddest celebrity deaths for me."
– Psyteq
He Gave A Good Fight
"Bruce Lee. He was only 32 and just finished filming Enter the Dragon. His future was so bright."
– Scubaguy425
He Gave Brilliant Performance
"River Phoenix."
– lemmy_Kno
"100%. This guy was amazing talent. 23 years old and people who weren’t even alive are still finding out about him every day."
– Foo3112
The list was extensive in the thread.
Some of the early losses that gutted me included Prince–who was a musical genius; and the incomparable Robin Williams–whose extraordinary gifts still touch people today.
May all these young souls rest in peace.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, which basically means when it comes to someone's looks, everyone has their specific tastes and opinions.
And while everyone is entitled to the certain aesthetics that turn them on, there are some beauty standards that some people generally can't get on board with.
Curious to explore what those might entail, One Redditor asked:
"What don't you find attractive that society says you should?"

If it makes them confident about their appearances, people should have the right to enhance their look in any fashion.
But some observers prefer the look of natural, physical blessings you're born with.
Luscious Lips
"Based on what I've seen in Miami... lip injections...apparently."
"Looks horrendous... and yes, we can tell."
– ImBecomingMyFather
A Specific Sensation
"I don’t like the look or feel of injected lips…I just recently kissed a girl with them and it felt like I was kissing jello 😑"
– TallestSiren
Being Full Of It
"Lip and cheek fillers. Please stop making us think we need these things, especially really young people who's thin lips suit their face perfectly."
– AngelicWooGirl
Fabulous Gnashers
"Super white, super fake veneers teeth."
– machoseatingnachos
These examples don't involve procedures. But they do elicit "tsk tsk" responses.
"Brand culture. People spend way too much in the name of brands."
– Naik0n_
Voluntary Marketing
"Fashion items with the designer logo THIS BIG all over it. Cringe."
– wiredandtired1980
Body Baking
"Artificial tanning."
– little_thing28
Find Your Boundary
"As someone who works at a tanning salon, yes. It’s very easy for people to over do it. That’s why I normally don’t recommend anything with a high intensity bronzer. We wanna make you look sun kissed, not sun f'ked."
– Catbuds123
Let's take a look at behaviors that are considered turn-off.
Wild Fandom
"The obsession of famous people. Sure I enjoy art and athleticism in most forms but to be obsessed over someone who isn't even physically in your life is wild to me."
– 99bonanas
Pompous Punks
"A cocky attitude, I'd rather a genuine person who's awkward any day. At least you know they're trying to communicate rather than show off."
– TheTastySpoonicorn
Practically Begging For "Likes"
"The whole instagram thing in general. I do care about looks with a partner, but I care about every day looks, not making hair and makeup a personality replacement."
– gsfgf
Going For That Artificial Look
"Phone camera apps use so much processing AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT there's instagram filters and stuff like that. It makes everyone look weird and unnatural."
"I remember having to dig deep into the settings on my samsung phone to disable that crap because the selfies looked weird."
– Kyanche
The thing is, no one should be able to dictate to people what is or isn't "attractive."
If it makes you feel sexy, get those body enhancements and wear those designer logos proudly.
Those aesthetics may not appeal to everyone, but you doing you will get you noticed by someone who appreciates your confidence.